Longmont-to-Hygiene trail gets first look by residents

Construction on city-county joint project could begin next year

The St. Vrain Greenway will connect with Boulder County s trail system after the extension, marked in red, is built.

LONGMONT -- Don Marvel's just a little closer to getting off the road. And he can't wait.

"It's fantastic," Marvel said Monday after he and his wife, Barb Hau, looked over the map showing how the St. Vrain Greenway at Golden Ponds would tie into Boulder County's trail system at Pella Crossing near Hygiene, a 2 mile link.

"We live real close to where this extensions is and we currently use 17th Avenue going all the way to Hygiene. So this will be a plus."

"I like riding off the roads," Hau agreed. "I think the trails are more aesthetic and safer."

Residents got their first look at the trail's layout Monday night at a city-county open house.

Tyler Martinez, 19, rides along the St. Vrain Greenway near Airport Road on Monday. The trail, which ends just west of Airport Road, is going to be extended to Hygiene through a joint city-county project.
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Greg Lindstrom
)

It's not a perfectly bucolic route; after heading northwest from Golden Ponds up St. Vrain Creek, the route heads due north to parallel Airport Road before veering west into more open areas again.

But, several agreed, it's a safer way for cyclists and walkers to reach Hygiene -- and someday, when time and money permit, to reach Lyons.

"That's much safer than (Colorado Highway) 66," Hau said.

"For people who enjoy destination riding, who enjoy getting out of the urban landscape and into a rural setting, it'll be a welcome amenity," said Paula Fitzgerald, Longmont's parks and open space project manager.

Just getting as far as Pella Crossing is expected to run around $1.46 million: $775,000 from Longmont, $480,000 from Boulder County, and a hoped-for $200,000 state trails grant.

The project has been in the works since 2010. Construction could start by next fall, but that will depend on negotiations with nearby landowners and with the BNSF railroad. The trail extension crosses the railroad twice.

Tim Swope, the county's transportation capital projects coordinator, said the approach on this project had been "opportunistic," looking for when enough landowners and enough resources might be on board.

"One of the benefits of having a regional trail plan is you can identify opportunities when they come up," Swope said.

Overall, the Greenway has about 9 miles of trails; the project would connect that to not only the 2 miles between Golden Ponds and Hygiene, but also the 3.1 miles of county trail beyond.

"I like that it's happening," said Deanna Hebbert, a Longmont resident who regularly runs along the Greenway with her husband, Roger. "Once it starts, it won't take very long."

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